The hereditary ruler of Fergana, Babur came to power at the age of 12, but was soon forced into exile by greedy, malicious uncles and went into hiding with his men. A direct descendent of both Timur and Ghenghis Khan, it would seem that the will to conquer was in Babur’s blood, and after failing to take the old Timurid capital of Samarkand on multiple occasions, he moved his troops to what is now present-day Afghanistan, establishing himself in Kabul. From there, he would go on to conquer much of India, which, once controlled by his ancestor, Timur, he saw as rightfully his.

All this is beautifully documented in his memoir, Baburnama, which contains important information about ancient peoples and places, along with confessions about having been “bashful” with his first wife, and zingers like this one, after he was forced to quite drinking for health reasons: Everyone regrets drinking and swears an oath (of abstinence); I swore the oath and regret that."